I inhaled deeply, skotting upright to a seated position, my hands instantly flying to my chest to steady the erratic rhythm of my breathing.
I scanned my surroundings. The world was a blinding, absolute white. I turned my head right, then left, repeating the motion in a daze. "I guess... it was all a dream," I whispered, the sound of my own voice barely a ripple in the silence.
I stood up slowly, my boots clicking against the pristine, white floors.
It felt hauntingly familiar like the first time I entered the runes. Back then, Yuri was there, and the gravity was so immense it nearly crushed my bones. But here, I could move freely. Perhaps the shock of the battlefield had induced this fever dream.wait was everything all a dream?
I walked for what felt like an endless few minutes until a solitary chair appeared in the distance. A person sat there, perfectly still.
"Umm, hi there," a sweet, melodic voice called out. She lifted her head, and I saw her face for the first time. Her hair was a soft, pale violet that fell in silken curtains over her eyes. She was bound to the chair by strips of white cloth no, it looked like a ceremonial binding, wrapping her from her chest down to her feet, pinning her to this spot between worlds.
"Umm... hello," I responded, my voice sounding unnervingly deep, echoing in the emptiness.
"There is a beautiful lady in front of you," she said, her voice soft as a lullaby. "What is she wearing?"
"I... I can't really tell," I stammered. "You're stuck to that chair."
"Mind helping her out of it?" she replied, a small, playful smile tugging at her lips.
"Sure." I responded without hesitation.
"Esta!" I called out, holding my hand to the side. With a shimmer of purple light, my blade manifested. With a few precise strikes, I sliced through the bindings. As she stood and stretched her arms, I realized with a jolt that she was completely bare. I whipped my head away, heat rushing to my face.
She took a step, then another. As her feet touched the floor, a shimmering dress materialized around her curves. With the next step, elegant heels formed, clicking sharply against the cold floor. She approached me until she was inches away, leaning in to inspect my face with a curious gaze.
Her eyes were the exact shade of her hair deep, reflective violet. Her hair was incredibly long, reaching all the way to the backs of her knees.
"What's your name?" she asked, sliding her arms around mine, pressing herself close.
"I'm Justin. Nice to meet you," I replied, looking down at where she clung to my arm. "What's yours?"
"My parents never gave me a name," she responded with a light smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "But you can call me Violet. Walk with me now, Justin."
"Okay," I said. We began to walk toward the west, our footsteps the only rhythm in the white void.
If this is the runes, why was she strapped down? And no name... what kind of life is that?
"No need to overthink it," she said, her voice sounding right in my ear. "You can just ask, you know."
"Oh. You can hear my thoughts?"
"Yes, I can." She looked up at me, her smile widening.
"Fine. What is this place?"
"It is a place between life and death," she responded vaguely. "But I am not entirely sure myself."
Not dead, but not alive? What does that even mean?
Suddenly, the white room dissolved. In a blink, we were standing in a lush, ethereal garden. Pink flower petals drifted from the sky, coating the grass. A small pond sat nearby, and as the petals touched the surface, they created soft, silent ripples.
"Now what is this place?" I asked, looking at the vibrant sky.
"It's a fragment of my memories," she responded.
"What do you remember?"
"I used to sit in this garden and cry my eyes out," she said, her tone oddly cheerful despite the words.
"Why were you crying?"
"I don't remember," she added simply.
She gripped my hand again, pulling me along. All she did was grin and steal glances at me. It was frustrating. Why was I here discovering useless memories? I needed to find the Witch and finish my mission.
The room shifted again. This time, the beauty was replaced by horror. Dead bodies lay strewn across a desolate wasteland.
Swords stood upright in the dirt, acting as grim tombstones. It was the aftermath of a catastrophic battle.
She pointed to the center of the field. A little girl sat there, knees pulled to her chest, sobbing. Her violet hair was matted, though I still couldn't see her eyes.
"That little girl... she looks just like you. And she's crying," I remarked.
"I was quite a crybaby when I was small," she said sweetly.
"Oh. Okay." I remained unfazed.
She walked over and suddenly slapped the image of the little girl. The child vanished instantly, and the bodies around us dissolved into dust, carried away by a phantom wind.
"Why would you hit yourself?" I asked, startled.
"Well, to shut her up," she said, smiling brightly at me. "Walk with me, please."
"Okay," I replied. She clung to my arm again. It was weird; I felt no embarrassment, no racing heart. Usually, I'd be a blushing mess with a girl this close, but I felt empty. My emotions were gone, as if they had been surgically removed.
The scenery shifted one last time. We were in a dark, cold room filled with massive glass tubes. Inside the tubes, bodies were suspended in green fluid experiments in various stages of development. Cables snaked across the ceiling, supplying oxygen, while three green bars on each tube monitored their energy levels.
"What is this place?" I asked, my voice echoing off the glass.
"A laboratory where the experiment was conducted," she replied, her eyes reflecting the glowing tubes.
"What kind of experiments?"
"Well, I can't quite remember," she said, placing a finger on her chin thoughtfully.
She dragged me toward the center of the room. The closer we got, the more the creatures in the tubes looked like humans or demons. In the very center, a massive sword floated mid-air. The hilt held a crimson gem that pulsed like a heartbeat, and the edge of the blade glowed with a grim, blood-red light..
"Come on. Take the blade," she urged.
I reached out and gripped the hilt. I pulled with everything I had, my muscles straining and my breath catching in my throat. It wouldn't budge an inch.
"Nope. It won't move," I panted.
"Well, that's a bummer," she said, sitting down on the floor.
"I just remembered... there is another way out of here," she added, looking up at me.
"Tell me. I need to get out of here."
"Blow up the place. But you would need immense power to do that." She tilted her head back, and I could see the elegant lines of her throat.
"Yeah, I don't have that kind of power," I sighed heavily, sitting down beside her.
"Well, stay still," she whispered. She leaned in close, her soft lips pressing against my forehead. Her body began to glow with an intense, blinding light.
"Now you will know the truth about why you are alive," she added, her form beginning to fade into the white light. "Make sure to greet me the next time we meet, okay?"
"Okay. I definitely will," I responded to the empty air as she vanished.
My own body began to ignite. An immense, terrifying power surged through my veins more mana than a physical body was ever meant to contain. A flood of memories crashed into my mind like a tidal wave, the pain so sharp I clutched my head and screamed.
Then, my body exploded into light.